The Americans
by Amarie Helyanwe
Summary: Harry Potter's life is turned upside down when 10 wacky Americans come to Hogwarts. However, their purpose is not as everyone supposed...
1. Express Meetings

Harry Potter made his way down the crowded corridor of the Hogwarts Express. He was inching along, weaving through countless groups of twittering, gossiping girls, simply to find that not a single compartment was empty. Disheartened, he kept trudging down the endless corridors.  
  
When the train suddenly lurched forward at 11:00, Harry lost his footing, sending him crashing into the last car of the train. There was only one compartment, and it was larger than all the others on the train. This was probably because all the luggage was kept in the back, and it filled up nearly the entire space which left just enough room to squeeze in the last few students.  
  
Harry sighed. He would probably be sitting by himself for most of the trip; Hermione and Ron were still prefects and had to meet in the first car with all the others.  
  
'Oh well,' he thought to himself. 'At least I can finally get some peace and quiet.' Dudley had gotten a new stereo system over the holidays and insisted on blasting the worst possible music ever. Harry's ears were still ringing ever so slightly.  
  
As he made ready to open the compartment door, he heard a high-pitched sneeze from inside. Harry just shrugged. Typical, he thought. Seeing as there was no other place to go, he slid open the door and looked in. A girl about his own age was sitting near the window reading a rather large book. She had slightly frizzy brown hair that hung past her shoulders and pale skin dotted with many freckles. She was wearing a long-sleeved black shirt with white collar and cuffs, a jean skirt, knee-high striped socks, and large, clunky shoes. She looked up as the door opened.  
  
"Hi," she said with a welcoming smile.  
  
"Hullo," he said in return. "Do you mind if I sit here?"  
  
"Not at all. Just to warn you, I have some friends who should be back soon." He noticed that she was not English. She spoke with an American accent that seemed to be just the slightest bit southern.  
  
He sat down across from her and said," Err.What year are you in? Because I've never seen you before and you certainly aren't a first year."  
  
"I'm a seventh year. I'm from America, and my friends and I were selected for this foreign exchange program that Dumbledore just started. Apparently he's trying to create a stronger bond between nations because of all the crap that's going on with Voldemort and what-not."  
  
Harry started on hearing Volemort's name. It wasn't that it bothered him to hear it. Quite the contrary; he was just surprised to hear someone else besides Dumbledore say it so steadily.  
  
The girl looked at him apologetically. "I'm sorry if saying his name bothers you. I know it does to a lot of people."  
  
"No, no," he replied hastily. "It's just that I'm not used to hearing people say it without stuttering or looking ill."  
  
"Yeah, well, that happens. I for one am not going to be afraid of a name. A very stupid name I might add. Anywho, enough about that. What's your name?"  
  
"Harry," he said simply.  
  
"I'm Shelby," she said smiling again.  
  
Harry was about to say something, but he stopped short when he heard a raucous outside the compartment. The door slid open and six laughing girls and three very annoyed-looking boys came in and sat down.  
  
"Oh, Emily, that was classic!" said one of the girls. "I can't believe you did that! I nearly pissed myself laughing when you went into that compartment."  
  
They all went off into another round of uproarious laughter.  
  
"I didn't think it was that funny," said a boy with bleached hair and dark roots. "All you did was make a fool of yourself."  
  
"Adam, I think it's high time you took that stick out of your ass," said another one of the girls. She had caramel skin and long, dark curly hair with red highlights. She was also dressed up as a pirate. "Either do that or please go somewhere else so we don't have to listen to you. You take all the joy out of everything. Well, at least you try."  
  
"What did you guys do?" asked Shelby. "I thought you were just going to get candy."  
  
"We took a detour," said a girl with dyed black hair. She was wearing black bondage pants with a jean jacket that had been drawn on in many places with a sharpie. She also had a collection of pins and bracelets. "Emily here thought it would be hilarious to give a compartment full of first years some Big Bum Bubblegum."  
  
"Umm.what is that?" asked Shelby, frowning.  
  
Another girl amongst the crowd piped up. She was tall and extremely skinny with wavy brown hair. She was wearing jean shorts and a t-shirt with a stallion on the front. "They are these joke candies that cause the chewer's butt to blow up and float around. She gave them to the first years and then in a matter of minutes, they were floating around their compartment..It was great. She got them off these two red-headed guys at the train station. What were their names again? Gred and Forge Beazley? Feazley?  
  
"Fred and George Weasley," said Harry.  
  
"Yeah! That's them. How do you know them?"  
  
"They're my best friend Ron's older brothers. They own a joke shop on Diagon Alley."  
  
"Cool. What's your name?"  
  
"Harry," he said.  
  
"Oh. This is the part where I get to introduce everybody," said Shelby. "Ok, Harry. This is Kara." She motioned toward the girl with the stallion t- shirt. "Eve." She pointed to the girl with dyed hair. "Emily." She smacked a tall girl with glasses on the back. "Julia." A girl with purple eyes and matching purple hair smiled. "Who else.yes. This is Brooke." She pointed to a girl sitting on the floor near the door. She was wearing a long black skirt with a t-shirt that read 'Techies do it in the dark.' She also wore a black beret atop her long dirty blonde hair. She seemed to be meditating. "And last but not least, Erika." The girl dressed as a pirate held out her palm. Harry stared at her blankly.  
  
"Umm.hi," he said.  
  
"High five.," she said meaningfully. Seeing that he didn't get it, she grabbed his hand and smacked his palm against her own.  
  
"Ok.," he said. "What was that for?"  
  
"It's just a way of saying hi," she said, slightly annoyed. "You forgot the guys, Shelby. This moron is Adam. This one is Damien." Smashed between Emily and Kara, a small boy with auburn hair smiled meekly. "And this is Chris." A tall boy with a blonde mohawk and many facial piercings shook Harry's hand.  
  
Setting her book aside, Shelby said," So, Harry. What house are you in?"  
  
"Gryffindor," he replied. "Are you all going to be sorted into houses?"  
  
"We're not exactly sure about that. We have to go to Dumbledore when we arrive."  
  
"How long is this ride anyway?" asked Damien. "I'm starving."  
  
"A couple more hours," said Harry. Damien slumped back into his seat. Just then, the woman with the food trolley came by and asked if they wanted anything. Half the group jumped up and pulled out their money, eagerly awaiting the taste of chocolate.  
  
During that time, Harry happened to glance by Julia as she was scrunching up her face in concentration. He watched in amazement as her hair changed from long and purple to short, choppy, and dirty blonde.  
  
"So you're a metamorphmagus?" he asked her.  
  
"Yup," she said grinning. He noticed that her eyes were no longer purple, but had changed to half brown, half green. "Have you ever met one before?"  
  
"Yeah. Her name was Tonks," he said.  
  
"Hmm.that name sounds familiar," she said distantly.  
  
At that point, everyone at the food trolley was busy hauling back their mountains of candy. Chocolate frogs were handed out all around and very soon there was a full-fledged munchy fest.  
  
"Hey, Harry," said Eve through a mouthful of pumpkin pasties. "You never told us your last name."  
  
Harry cringed slightly on the inside. He had just met these people and was beginning to have a good time even though they were a strange group. The last thing he wanted was another group of strangers gawking at him and asking him a bunch of stupid questions about Voldemort. However, it was unavoidable, and just as he was about to say "Potter," the door slid open and an unpleasantly familiar trio darkened the doorway.  
  
"Well well well. If it isn't Potter and his brand new fan club," drawled Draco Malfoy. "Whatever happened to Weasel and the mudblood, Potter? I guess they don't matter to you anymore considering the fact that you have a bunch of ditzy American girls at your command."  
  
Crabbe and Goyle, who were standing on either side of Malfoy like his bodyguards, snickered loudly.  
  
Emily stood up angrily. "Hey! Beavis and Butthead! You wanna take this outside?" The pair stopped immediately and looked at her in disbelief. Nobody had ever challenged them before, least of all a girl. Instead of saying anything, they just stood there, dumbfounded.  
  
"That's what I thought," said Emily, sitting back down and looking pleased with herself. Everyone else sitting down smirked, but Malfoy just stood there with his unwavering look of cockiness.  
  
"Oh, you have her well trained, Potter. And what about the others? Are they good little monkeys like this one?"  
  
The smirks were instantly replaced with rage. Before you could say quidditch, every person in the compartment except Brooke, who was still meditating, had stood up and whipped out their wands. "Hey, I like monkeys, especially Jack," said Erika raising her hand to signal she had something to say.  
  
Emily padded her on the shoulder, "You'll be okay, you'll be okay, then again monkey's are pretty cool," She said, all of a sudden looking deep in thought, "In fact, I want a trainer monkey, but my parents said no because they tend to throw feces."  
  
"Emily, No!" Eve cut her off from the long rant she was about to go on and signaled for them to start. Meanwhile Harry was observing the conversation, half scared and confused and half wanting to laugh, 'what in the world have I gotten myself in to, whatever it is I'm pretty sure I like it'. Then, before you could even start to say snitch, hexes and jinxes went flying.  
  
After a few minutes, everything stopped. Malfoy was on all fours, wheezing heavily. Crabbe and Goyle were sprawled in the hallway with all of their hair gone. Everyone else in the compartment had some sort of weird ailment. Eyebrows singed off, grass growing on the palms of their hands, putrid- smelling bubbles pouring from the ears, and so on. The counter curses were muttered and everyone sat down again, except for Brooke who had never moved and Erika who levitated the three decrepit Slytherins and blasted them into the next car of the train.  
  
"Well, that was interesting," muttered Eve. Turning toward Harry, she said," So, Potter, huh?"  
  
"Guilty," said Harry shrugging, his cheeks turning bright red.  
  
"Don't be embarrassed man," said Chris. "You're the coolest. All that stuff with Voldemort? Wow."  
  
"Is no one in America afraid to say Voldemort's name?" Harry asked.  
  
"No one at Aglar is," said Kara." Aglar is our school in America. It's kind of weird actually. Voldemort affected America the same as in Europe if not more."  
  
"Why is that?" asked Harry, confused.  
  
Brooke snapped out of meditation and began to speak. "Because America is based on the principle that people of all races and creeds are accepted, there is a lot more diversity than in other countries. For wizards, this means that you can be of muggle birth, or be pureblood, or be half and half and it doesn't matter. Of course, not everybody sees it this way, but they are in the minority. Anyway, because people don't care, there are virtually no pureblood families. This is why Voldemort hated America so much. He thought it was full of scum and he did everything he could to wipe everyone out. There were mass killings every day. You couldn't walk down a street without hearing screams of terror or the cries of someone in agony. Twice as many people died in the states than in Europe."  
  
"Well said," muttered Eve.  
  
"But how come no one at your school is afraid to say his name?"  
  
"It's because of the dean," said Julia. "She was always telling us that as long as we stayed together and stayed strong, there was nothing to be afraid of. She herself was not afraid of Voldemort, even though he killed a lot of her family. It was her influence that has kept everyone in the school from not being afraid."  
  
"A school full of Gryffindors," thought Harry to himself.  
  
Suddenly, the train lurched to a screeching halt, and the lights flickered gloomily before dying completely.  
  
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A/N This is my first story ever. Fanfic or otherwise. Its kinda stupid, but whatever. Please review!! Need constructive criticism!!!! And for some reason, this is uploading weird.sorry if it looks funny..whatever.  
  
[Hi, I'm her super special friend who edited it hehe... (I'm Emily and I don't always wear glasses fyi) anyway after reading this super cool fanfic u should check out mine hehe...(she doesn't know I put this here, that's what u get when u trust ppl like me to edit your work) neway my pen names DorkyandProud... Harry Potter and the Seer. Well I gtg post this for her!] 


	2. The Unexpected Speech

Every noise on the train had ceased. Not a voice was heard, not even a whisper. Hearts stopped and blood ran cold, yet the silence seemed to be deafening. Finally someone spoke.  
  
"What...in the...hell...is going on?" said Damien slowly.  
  
Nobody could find it in themselves to respond. Harry and Shelby, who both had window seats, turned and looked out to try and see what was stopping the train. However, they were in the last car, so they could only see to about halfway up the train. What they could make out, was that they were on a very high bridge over a wide river.  
  
Somewhere high in the heavens, thunder rolled.  
  
"Well...um...maybe it's just a technical problem," suggested Emily.  
  
"Sure, Em," said Julia contemptuously. "I'll bet wizards have loads of technical problems."  
  
Everyone could feel that it was much worse than a mere technical problem could ever be. Their worst fears were confirmed when they heard a roar come from the front of the train.  
  
"Bloody hell," muttered Harry. "I think that's a dragon."  
  
Another roar sounded and was joined with a jolt of the train. Everyone went pale.  
  
"Why, in the name of Merlin, is a dragon here?!" asked Chris, dumbfounded. "Aren't they supposed to be in Romania or some obscure place like that?"  
  
"Yes, they are, and they are kept under constant watch and it is very difficult for them to escape," said Harry. He added thoughtfully, "Even if one did get loose, why would it come here of all places?"  
  
The train shook again. This time, so violently that everyone fell out of their seats.  
  
"Ugh," said Kara with disgust. "Thanks for sitting on my face, Chris."  
  
"Anytime," he said with a snort of laughter.  
  
They heaved themselves off of the floor back up to their seats. Their eyes became glued to the window in hopes that they might see the dragon. They saw nothing, but heard another roar. There was a strange thing about that roar. The other two had been full of rage and hatred that could come only from a provoked and irritated dragon. This one still had those furies, but they seemed to be overridden with sadness. Within a matter of minutes, the train was up and running again, speeding across the bridge. When it got to the other side everyone looking out of the windows gasped in surprise. A small dragon with smooth, copper-colored scales was sprawled on the ground. It wasn't moving, but it still seemed to be breathing. The strange thing was its eyes. They seemed to be filled with the same sadness heard in its last roar. It was all gone in a moment as the train sped on.  
  
"That was so sad," said Brooke with a tear in her eye. "Couldn't you feel its pain? I wonder what made it so upset."  
  
"No one cares," Adam muttered under his breath. Erika heard him and swatted him with her shoe.  
  
"I wonder who stopped it," said Eve. "Doesn't it take a very powerful wizard to stop a dragon single-handedly?"  
  
"Yes," said Shelby. "They would have to know the Venusche charm. It's the only thing that can be used by a single witch or wizard to take out a dragon. It was devised in the 1200's when dragons were becoming more and more of a threat to mankind. It takes a lot of power to perform and I heard that if it's not done properly, you could blow yourself up."  
  
"Merlin's beard," exclaimed Chris. "How do you even know this?"  
  
"I read it in a book." She replied.  
  
"You remind me of my friend Hermione," said Harry.  
  
"Is that a good thing?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Ok."  
  
"Whatever," said Kara dismissively. "How could anyone on this train be able to perform the.whatever-it's-called charm? None of the students are that powerful, are they?"  
  
"We'll just have to find out when we get to Hogwarts," said Damien.  
  
The rest of the trip passed without any more incidents. Harry found out a lot about his new American friends. He concluded that they were a very cool group of people, no matter how odd they were. The thing that was bothering him most was the fact that Ron and Hermione had never come back. He didn't have much time to fret about it because the train was soon making its final stop at Hogwarts.  
  
"Firs' years this way!" bellowed Hagrid as everyone got off the train. "Firs' years, follow me! Alrigh' there Harry?"  
  
Harry waved, and Erika nudged him. "Should we go with the first years, or should we just follow everyone else?"  
  
"I'm not exactly sure," he replied. "You should probably just follow everyone else."  
  
They rounded the corner and saw the carriages with open doors, awaiting the students. Harry looked at the winged Thestrals, their black coats gleaming. He wished he could not see them...  
  
Harry's eyes roamed the crowd in search of Ron and Hermione. He couldn't find them, so he got into one of the carriages with Adam and Erika. The pair bickered the entire way to the iron gates, until Erika finally pulled out her wand and said, "Silencio!"  
  
Adam's mouth kept moving, but no sound came out. When he realized this, he looked furious and started mouthing all kinds of swearwords. Erika just laughed.  
  
When the carriages came to a stop, everyone jumped out and headed up the steps to the entrance hall. An older-looking witch wearing green robes noticed the American crowd because of their lack of uniform and called them over to her. Harry went into the Great Hall to continue his search for his two best friends.  
  
"Good evening," said the witch. "I am Professor McGonagall, and welcome to Hogwarts. Professor Dumbledore has informed me that you are to be put in your own separate house, rather than sorted into the other houses. This will give you all a chance to become acquainted with all of the students as opposed to the students of one particular house. Do you have any questions? No? Good. Please proceed to the Great Hall for the welcoming feast."  
  
They trouped into the hall where students were still getting seated. They found empty seats near Harry and sat down.  
  
"How does this work?" asked Brooke.  
  
"First years come in and get sorted into the four houses by placing the sorting hat on their heads. Then Dumbledore makes some announcements, and then...the feast."  
  
"Word," said Erika, then added, "Woa! Check out that ceiling!" The group looked up to see a black sky dotted with clouds and stars.  
  
"It's bewitched to look like the night sky," said a voice behind them. Everyone turned to see a girl with bushy brown hair and a tall, lanky boy with flaming red hair.  
  
"Hermione! Ron!" exclaimed Harry, "Where were you?"  
  
"It's...erm..,a rather long story...Well not quite, but...we'll tell you later...," Ron said nervously. He glanced around at the new group. "Who are your friends Harry?" he asked with a sly smile.  
  
"These are American foreign exchange students," said Harry. "This is Chris, Eve, Julia, Damien, Shelby, Emily, Brooke, Erika, Adam, and Kara."  
  
"Hi," they said in unison.  
  
Ron and Hermione squeezed in just as the first years began their march toward the front of the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall brought out the stool and the patched and frayed Sorting Hat. Everyone waited in anticipation for the usual song. The hat's brim opened.  
  
"Students of Hogwarts and guests from distant lands, good evening. I chose to abstain from singing my song this year because I have something to say that does not fit into poetry. Unity. I warned you about it two years ago. Some took heed and others didn't. See where it has brought us? We are now scattered and divided. Now, more then ever, is when we need to stand together and stand strong. It is up to you, the youth of our nation, to mend the breakage of trust and friendship and to work to keep us all from a second darkness. It pains me to separate the youngest now, but it is, after all, my job. I want you all to remember forever what I have told you. I warned you before and I am doing it again for the last time. There will never be another chance. It is now or never. Let the sorting begin."  
  
The hall was silent. No one clapped. No one cheered. Nothing could have prepared them for that.  
  
"I thought it was supposed to sing," whispered Brooke to Harry.  
  
"It is..."  
  
Then the sorting began. When all the first years were seated, Dumbledore stood.  
  
"The first years will please note that the forbidden forest is off- limits to all students. Also, I would like to welcome our American foreign exchange students." The students clapped. "And finally, I would like you all to meet the new defense against the dark arts teacher." He motioned toward a witch with dark purple robes. She had extremely curly hair and a cheerful face. She was also very tan. The students clapped again. "This is Professor Smith, who is also from America. And now, etan eower foda!"  
  
The food appeared and everyone dug in.  
  
"So, are you going to tell me what happened?" asked Harry.  
  
Ron looked up like a deer caught in the headlights. When he finished chewing his chicken, he said, "Well, we went to the first car for the prefect meeting like usual...and...uhh...they told Hermione and me that we were Head Boy and Girl. They usually send the letters out over the summer, but they had some sort of problem."  
  
Harry was shocked. It figured that Hermione was Head Girl, but Ron? Then again, he thought, Ron has worked really hard lately and he deserves this.  
  
"That's great Ron!" Harry said. "Your mum's probably really pleased."  
  
"Yeah," said Ron looking relieved. Harry supposed that he thought that he would be upset about it.  
  
"So you guys must know what happened with the dragon," said Julia.  
  
"Oh yes," said Hermione. "It was so strange. It seemed to fly out of nowhere and sat on the tracks right on front of the train. The conductor stopped and turned off the lights in hopes that it would go away. That didn't work though. It roared and threw itself against the train, almost as if it were trying to knock it off the tracks. We all thought it was going to succeed, but Professor Smith came up to the front, blasted a window away, and performed the Venusche charm. The dragon was thrown backward on the ground and stunned. Once the conductor saw that that we weren't in danger anymore, he repaired the window and set off again."  
  
"I knew it was the Venusche charm!" exclaimed Shelby. Everyone looked at her. "Ok...yeah...whatever...," she muttered, and began to concentrate on her soup.  
  
"What kind of dragon was that?" asked Brooke.  
  
"A Peruvian Vipertooth," Ron replied.  
  
The rest of the meal passed, and the food was cleared away. Dumbledore stood up again. "Bedtime everyone!" Everyone left the hall except for the Americans. They all went up to Dumbledore.  
  
"Ah, yes," he said with a bright smile. "Welcome again to Hogwarts. I expect you'll be wanting to see your rooms? Of course. Just follow Professor Sinastra here, and she will show you to your dormitories."  
  
A witch with robes of dark red showed them to a statue of a hobbit on the fourth floor.  
  
"Password?" said the statue.  
  
"Pipe weed," said Professor Sinastra. The statue moved to the right to reveal a passageway.  
  
"Follow me," she said, and they went through the passageway into a circular room with squashy armchairs and a roaring fire. "This will be your common room. The girl's room is on the right, and the boy's on the left. If that is all, I bid you all good night." She went back thought the passage and the statue slid in front of it again.  
  
Everyone murmured their goodnight's and went into their new dormitories. Both parties' rooms had magnificent four-poster beds with silk sheets. Everyone's stuff had been brought up, and school uniforms were laid out. The most fascinating thing was that the ceilings were exactly like the Great Hall; bewitched to look like the sky outside.  
  
The girls changed into their pajamas, put their things away, and got into bed. Everyone would have fallen asleep easily had it not been for Erika's monkey. It was jumping around and screeching.  
  
"Emily, did you give Jack Fizzing Whizbees again?!" asked Erika in a very annoyed tone.  
  
"Oops," said Emily.  
  
"Arg...Emily! You know those make him nuts!" She cast a sleeping spell on the crazy little monkey and he immediately stopped hopping around and curled up at the end of the bed and slept soundly.  
  
"Ow! What was that for? Are you trying to shoe me away!" exclaimed Emily as a shoe hit her.  
  
"One more classic Emily joke," Julia said licking her finger and marking an invisible tab.  
  
"Fizzing Whizbees. Duh," said Erika sleepily.  
  
"Give it a rest already," said Eve exasperatedly. "We have classes tomorrow, and I have to sleep."  
  
"Sleep, who needs sleep!" screamed Emily, all the girls raised their hands.  
  
"Shut up!" screamed the boys from their room, after that Emily was amazingly quiet.  
  
They all drifted into their own dream lands full of paper flowers, pirates, and elves...  
  
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A/N Woo-hoo! Only a week! I am the coolest! I know the dragon thing was weird, but that's all I could think of. I loved my Venusche charm though. I am so clever sometimes! HA! Never mind...Any words that you don't recognize as English are Old English or Middle English. I am obsessed. To those of you who know more about those languages, and saw an error, please forgive me. I don't know the syntax yet. But whatever. Much thanks for the reviews everyone. They are very helpful. Keep 'em coming!  
  
Yay, it's me, Emily again, my character sure is well, ok yea it is like me, but still! I have come to the realization that all my friends think that I'm just silly and stupid, but I actually do very well in school I tell you, I do. Mind you I never do my homework, or study but I do do well, so there! Anyway hope you didn't find any errors. Sorry another one won't be out for a week cause I'm going to the beach! (and Shelby needs my help, that makes me feel so, well needed, lol) anyway bye! Oh yea I felt soooo loved when someone put me in their list of favorite characters in their review!  
  
PS: read my story: Harry Potter and the Seer my pen names DorkyAndProud!  
  
PPS: Hehe there were computer problems before I left so this didn't get posted but there it was (by the way that means I am back from the beach and now have color in my skin and a new purse!) 


	3. Beginings

Oh Shelby I left you a surprise muahahahaha  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
They woke with a start early the next morning to the sound of off-key bells. They all sprung out of bed and scurried around trying to figure out how to turn them off. Brooke eventually found the source: a wizard alarm clock right next to the door. She flipped the switch and the clamor ceased.  
  
"What time is it anyway?" Shelby asked groggily rubbing her eyes.  
  
"Seven o'clock," Brooke said yawning.  
  
"Too damn early," She said falling back on her bed and curling up. Emily threw a pillow at her (B-R/N: That totally wouldn't be me I'd be the one sleeping I'm always late for school because of sleeping in, but I guess Shelby wouldn't know that because we haven't gone to school together since the 5th grade.).  
  
"Fine," she said getting up and throwing the pillow back. They proceeded to change into their new uniforms.  
  
"It's too bad we can't wear whatever we want," said Eve.  
  
"Yeah. Decrepitness..." agreed Shelby.  
  
Erika said goodbye to Jack, and they trooped down to the Great Hall for breakfast. They met up with the guys in the entrance hall and went in to sit with Harry.  
  
"Morning," he said cheerfully.  
  
"Morning," they replied.  
  
"Do we get our schedules this morning?" asked Adam.  
  
"Yeah," said Ron through a mouthful of toast. "McGonagall will come around with them. Speaking of which..." Professor McGonagal had come up at that very minute with a handful of schedules and passed them out to everyone.  
  
"Who else has transfigurations first?" asked Kara, looking around. Julia and Chris raised there hands without looking up from their schedules. Everyone was so busy comparing schedules that they didn't notice three other boys come up and sit next to them, one of them said, with an Irish accent, "Oy, Harry who are your friends?"  
  
"Oh, everybody this is Seamus, Dean, and Neville." The three boys gave small waves and smirked apparently pleased at the fact that there were a bunch of new girls who were in their year. "Seamus, Dean, and Neville, this is everybody," a chorus of 'hellos' sounded and everyone went back to toast munching and schedule studying.  
  
"I'd better be off," muttered Damien. "I have to get to Divinations." He finished off his pumpkin juice, gathered up his stuff, and left. Soon after, everyone was doing the same thing, and heading off to their first classes.  
  
"Harry, can you tell me where the defense against the dark arts classroom is?" asked Erika.  
  
"Is that your first class?" she nodded. "It's mine too. Just follow us." And with that, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Erika made their way to the first class of the day. When they arrived, they saw a bunch of Slytherins, including Draco Malfoy and his cronies, hanging around outside the class.  
  
"Oh lovely," said Ron sarcastically. "Why is that that we always seem to start the year with a double class with the Slytherins?"  
  
"You might be cursed," said a voice. They turned to see Professor Smith with a pile of books and papers in her arms and a cheery smile on her face. "However, it doesn't matter because this is the last year you'll have to deal with it. Well, come on! What is everyone standing around for? Inside! Chop, chop!"  
  
They filed in and took their seats. Professor Smith came in last and dropped her armload of books and papers on the desk. She turned to face the class.  
  
"Good morning!" She began cheerfully. "Glad to see everyone so upbeat!" The sleepy students looked at her incredulously. "Let's get started then! Okay, we'll begin with the boring stuff... Bulstrode, Millicent!" She continued with the role until it was established that everyone was present. "Right. I see here that you have covered dark creatures, unforgivable curses, a few hexes, jinxes, ect. and lots of theory in your past years, correct? Of course. Well, it looks like we will be beginning this year with the Seli hexes. These will become very useful when-"  
  
"The Seli hexes? You can't be serious," said Draco Malfoy with his annoying drawl. "Those hexes are pointless. No one uses hem anymore. Why don't you try giving us helpful information instead of crap?"  
  
Her face was wiped clean of its bright smile and was replaced with a look of sheer annoyance. "Mr. Malfoy, when I want your moronic opinion, I will ask for it. Until then, you can keep your mouth shut. You will soon find that I do not give 'crap,' as you call it, in this class. Nor will I take any. Especially from a person such as yourself. I see getting turned into a ferret in your fourth year didn't teach you to watch your mouth. Would you like me to re-teach you *that* little lesson?"  
  
Malfoy just glared. Ron, Hermione, and Harry looked as if they had just found out that they had just won a million galleons; such were their looks of shock and glee. Erika laughed quietly. Professor Smith smiled again and continued with her lesson.  
  
When class ended the Gryffindors left feeling extremely happy.  
  
"Malfoy got shut down!" said Ron, grinning. "That was one of the best moments of my life..." He shook his head and flicked away a non-existent tear.  
  
"Is that guy always such an ass?" asked Erika.  
  
"Of course," replied Ron. "He's a Malfoy. What else would you expect?"  
  
"Well, nothing because I don't know about the wizarding families in Europe," she said.  
  
"Oh... right..." he said thoughtfully.  
  
The rest of the day passed without too much drama. Shelby blew up a cauldron in Potions, and Chris accidentally turned his desk into a walrus instead of a vase.  
  
That night at dinner, Professor McGonagall came up to the Gryffindor table and asked Harry to come with her. He came back from their conversation with a look of surprise on his face.  
  
"What did she say?" asked Hermione.  
  
"I-I'm quidditch captain," he said, still in a state of shock.  
  
"Harry, that's great!" exclaimed Ron, accidentally spitting some of his potatoes out at Kara.  
  
"Eww..." She said, picking them out of her hair.  
  
"Sorry," he said hastily. "So, Harry. When are practices going to start?"  
  
"I'm not sure yet. I guess I'll have to work out some kind of schedule. First, we have to do tryouts. We need two Chasers."  
  
"Holy crap," said Shelby. "You need Chasers? That's awesome. Julia and I are Chasers. We played at our old school in America."  
  
"Wait, what school did you say you went to?" asked Ron.  
  
"Spuzz Squishford," replied Julia.  
  
"Hmm... I think I've heard about your team..." he said.  
  
"Did you want to play tomarrow?" asked Harry.  
  
"Sure," said Shelby. "When?"  
  
"How about right after dinner?"  
  
"Alright."  
  
They all turned around when they heard a loud noise on the table. They saw Kara standing on top of it, gently kicking plates and trays out of her way. The entire hall was staring at her. Then she began to dance. Words could not describe the complete and utter stupidity of this dance. With her absurd combination of squats and nonsensical hand motions, she soon had the entire place in an uproar. All of the Americans in particular were doubled over with laughter. (B-R/N: I read this to them at a celebration for Julia's B-day and we really were laughing hard.) When she hopped down at the end, the hall clapped and cheered. She took a clumsy bow and returned to her seat. Emily handed her a green piece of paper.  
  
"I got to hand it to you," she said, still laughing, "I seriously didn't think you would do it."  
  
Kara just grinned and continued eating her chicken.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next night after dinner, Harry, Ron, Julia, and Shelby went to the quidditch pitch. Harry and Ron were startled when they first saw the lime green quidditch robes, but were even more startled when they saw the Apollo 43 broomsticks.  
  
"Merlin, where did you get those?" asked Ron, with wide, covetous eyes. "I thought they weren't supposed to come out until next year."  
  
"They're not. I won them for the school team," said Julia, climbing onto her broom.  
  
"How?" asked Harry.  
  
"A coloring contest," she said. Then she took off. The others followed right behind her. They played for about an hour, and then they stopped because they could barely see.  
  
As they were walking off the quidditch pitch, they heard a loud rustling. It seemed to be coming from the Forbidden Forest. They stood and watched. After a minute or so, the rustling didn't seem to be coming from one single area; more like the entire forest was shaking.  
  
BOOM.  
  
The ground gave one huge tremble. The forest was growing crazy. The trees were thrashing about, waving their branches wildly. The four looked up to the canopy and saw a single red beam of light going straight up to the heavens. It looked to be coming from the heart of the forest. It was all gone in an instant. The trees became quiet, and an eerie feeling of sudden loneliness lingered in the air.  
  
"I think we should get going now," whispered Ron. They agreed and headed back into the castle. They said goodnight and separated to go to their own dormitories. When Ron and Harry entered their common room, Hermione was still up. They told her everything that had just happened. She was just as puzzled as they were. They talked about the different possibilities. However, the situation was so odd that they couldn't think of any explanations.  
  
"One thing that I've been thinking about is this new foreign exchange program," said Hermione. "It's kind of suspicious that we didn't exactly *exchange* students. We just get a big group of loony Americans, and nobody from our school goes anywhere..."  
  
Harry and Ron just stared.  
  
"Do you think Dumbledore's up to something?" asked Harry.  
  
"I don't know," answered Hermione. "I think we need to find out what's going on. Think of all the strange things that have been happening so far, and we've only been here two days!"  
  
Harry went to bed thinking about what Hermione had said. Could they be spies? Or could they just be innocent students? The questions bothered him all night so that he barely got any sleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: Haha! All done. Sorry that this chapter might be a little rough. I had to send it off before I went to camp. I'm having my trusted Beta-reader, Emily, type it and post it for me. Thank you Emily! You're the second Coolest! Heehee. Reviews! Reviews! I still need constructive criticism. This stuff is hard to write!  
  
Hey it's Emily, I'd just like to say sorry I've had a lot on my mind for the last week. Oh and Erika asked me to say she's not black, oh and yes Shelby did change the school name. Anyway there it was. 


	4. Plans, Interrupted

Chapter 4 Plans, Interrupted  
  
Disclaimer: I hate these things because you people can tell what is original and what is not.Anyway, I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I own the AWESOME Led Zeppelin and their totally spankin' song "Ramble On."  
  
The next week passed without anything exceptionally unusual happening. Of course, there were always little odd things going on here and there. It was, after all, a school for magic.  
  
Harry and Ron had pondered for hours about the meaning of the trembling of the forest and the burst of light. Any theorems they had on the matter were all squashed soon after by either Hermione or some of the Americans.  
  
"Maybe the centaurs were having some kind of astrology ritual whatsy?" suggested Ron.  
  
"Centaurs don't have rituals. All they do is independently study the skies. Honestly, we've met some before. Shouldn't you know this by now?" said Hermione, rolling her eyes.  
  
"Or maybe some garden gnomes were." started Harry.  
  
"Before you go any further with that idea, think about how utterly retarded it is," pointed out Eve.  
  
"OK."  
  
"That's it then!" exclaimed Ron, throwing his hands up in defeat. "We'll never figure what's in that damn forest and it will hang around our heads for the rest of our lives under we finally kill ourselves with insanity!"  
  
"Maybe you will, mon amie," said Julia coolly, while changing her hair to black with chunky electric blue highlights. "I, on the other hand, am going to find out as soon as possible what it's all about. Carpe Diem!"  
  
"And how do you plan on doing that?" he asked doubtfully.  
  
"I'll go into the forest," she said simply.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione just looked at each other. The expression on all of their faces said the same thing: "These Yanks are completely bonkers."  
  
"I don't think you realize just how dangerous it is," said Harry. "There are werewolves, giant spiders, and Merlin knows how many other obscure, disgusting, and evil creatures."  
  
"I think I will be fine," she said. "I just don't particularly want to go by myself. Who's with me?" She looked around at the others, who were engrossed in a hard-core game of Monopoly.  
  
"I'm in," said Kara, without looking up, and rolling the miniature dice. "HA! I got the boardwalk! I got the boardwalk! What now?!" She poked Emily in the side of the head, who retaliated by setting her shoes on fire.  
  
"Anyone else?" asked Julia.  
  
"I'm in too," muttered everybody else in unison. They were staring glumly at the game board, which was now nicely singed on the edges due to Kara's flaming shoes.  
  
"Alright then," said Harry, shrugging. "I guess I'll go too."  
  
"Me too," said Ron decisively. "Plus, you'll need people of intelligence on this sort of mission.quest.thing."  
  
Hermione just rolled her eyes. "Well, I still think it's ridiculous, but I guess I'll go too."  
  
"When are we going," asked Damien.  
  
"How about Friday night so we won't have to worry about homework?" suggested Eve.  
  
"It's settled then," said Adam.  
  
In Professor Dumbledore's office  
  
"Professor, I really think we should do something about the coming. What if some of the students saw the light through the trees? What if Harry saw? He, Mr. Weasley, and Ms. Granger always feel the need to 'investigate' whenever they spot something out of the ordinary."  
  
Professor McGonagall was pacing up and down Dumbledore's office with a worried expression on her face.  
  
"Please sit down Professor," said Dumbledore calmly. He flicked his wand, and a cushioned oak chair slid from under the desk and turned invitingly toward the uneasy Professor. She reluctantly sat down. "I have it on good authority that both Harry and Ron, along with two of the foreign students, were on the quidditch field at the time. I think it would be best if we summoned them here and asked them if they did in fact see anything unusual."  
  
"I will go get them Professor," she said, rising from her seat, and starting toward the door.  
  
"Don't mind that, Professor," said Dumbledore, with the typical twinkle in his eye. He rose from his seat, whistled a shrill note, flicked his wand four times, and uttered some unintelligible words. In a mere second, four more figures were suddenly present in the room, although they were all apparently caught off guard by the spell. Harry was crouched over, in the middle of removing a pebble from his shoe; Ron was brushing his teeth; Julia was on her tippy-toes, holding a club high over her head, ready to strike; Shelby, who was about to become the strikee, had headphones on, and was dancing around like a complete idiot. Her eyes were closed and her face was screwed up in concentration. She was thrashing her wild brown hair around as she sang:  
  
''Twas in the darkest depths of Mordor,  
I met a girl so fair.  
But GOLLUM and the eeeeevil one  
Crept up and slipped away with her, her, her yeah.'  
  
CLANK! The club fell, and the singing ceased. After a couple of minutes of genuine confusion, everyone figured out where they were.  
  
Harry looked around nervously. Every time he came to this office, it was either because something bad happened, or Dumbledore knew that he knew something. He asked timidly,"Uhh.Professor? Why are we here? And...how are we here?"  
  
"Secondly, you are here because of a handy little spell that has the power to transport people right where you want them. Don't try to learn it any time soon. It's much too difficult, and you might splinch someone." They all winced at the thought of being splinched. Firstly, there is something I need to ask the four of you. When you were playing Quidditch last week, did you see anything odd?"  
  
The four glanced at each other nervously. Shelby rubbed her head as if in thought, but it was probably due to the fact that she had just been beat mercilessly.  
  
"Well?" inquired McGonagall. "We don't have all evening. Did you see anything, or didn't you?"  
  
"We don't think so Professor," lied Harry. The others looked at him with wide eyes, praying that he would get away with his false story. "We were only playing Quidditch for a little while and we came back well before dark."  
  
Dumbledore cast glances at the four students, who were looking intently at the floor, trying desperately to avert their eyes so as not to give away their secret.  
  
"Very well then," he said with a sigh. "You may return to your dormitories now." Harry looked up at him and could tell from the look in Dumbledore's bright blue eyes that he did not buy into his story in the slightest.  
  
When they were all safely out in the main hall, Ron suddenly stopped. Pointing at the headphones and circular object in Shelby's hand, he asked, "What are those things?"  
  
"It's called a CD player," she replied. "A CD is a round little thingummy that has music encoded onto it. When you put the CD into the CD player, like so." She demonstrated how it was done. "You place the headphones over your eyes, press play, and viola! Music! It's a muggle invention.and it rocks."  
  
"But how does it work on school grounds?" Harry asked, very confused. "I thought muggle devices started to go nuts when they got around here."  
  
"They do usually, but I learned a spell that prevents that. It's pretty complicated, but I don't know what I would do without my Led Zeppelin." She unconsciously stroked her CD player, and glanced up in a goofy, dream-like state.  
  
"What's a Led Zeppelin?" Ron asked.  
  
"A rock and roll band from the 60's and 70's. In my personal and awesome opinion, they are the best in the world," she replied, remaining in her dream-like state.  
  
"And yet the problem remains!" cut in Julia, her hair turning flaming red. "What the hell are we supposed to do now that Dumbledore is onto us?"  
  
"Good point," said Harry. "Well, I suppose the best we can do is to act completely normal so they don't get any more suspicious than they already are." Receiving three looks of skepticism, he added, "You know what I mean.as normal as possible."  
  
They reached the staircases and went their separate ways to their dormitories. Julia muttered the password, ("Volleyball") and they entered to a common room filled with their anxious friends. They were immediately bombarded with questions.  
  
"Why did you disappear?"  
  
"Where did you go?"  
  
"How come?"  
  
They shut them up with a silencing charm and explained all that had happened.  
  
"So are we still on for Friday night?" asked Erika, with a confused look on her face. "I don't think we should back out on this. We're too far into it by now."  
  
"I agree," said Emily.  
  
"Of course you do."  
  
"Okay," she said perkily  
  
Kara got up and yawned. "I gotta go to bed. I have a potions test, and Snape has been really decrepit lately so I have to get a good mark on it."  
  
"Good idea," said Eve.  
  
They all proceeded to their separate dorms. The ceiling above was cloudy, and the moon was hidden. They all changed; Kara into her spider-man pj's, Emily into her ultra-spexy Victoria's Secret ensemble, and everyone else into normal pj's.  
  
The lights went out, along with their consciousness.  
  
When Friday morning came, the girls awoke not to their unpleasant bells, but by three certain boys with foghorns, and whistles. A noise level of about 10 decibels is enough to wake even the dead. However, they were soon put into body-binds and beaten down. When they were released from the spell, they rolled over groaning.  
  
"Shit," groaned Adam. "I can't feel my arm."  
  
"Likewise," gasped Chris, who was still in a headlock by Brooke.  
  
"I'm too cute for this!" shrieked Damien.  
  
"Next time you should think about that before you wake us up like that!" scolded Eve, still holding her wand in a threatening position."Truce," said Chris, who was finally released. "Are we still going in tonight?"  
  
"Yes," said Emily shortly. "Now get out so we can get dressed."  
  
"Why would we do a thing like that?" said Adam with an impish grin. Erika answered by firing a pillow off at him. He and the others fled to the Great Hall.  
  
Thirteen students had a very hard time concentrating that day. They all had their minds set on one thing: their "quest" into the Forbidden Forest. After what seemed like days on end, classes finally ended, and the thirteen students met in the American common room.  
  
"I think we should get some weapons. We might need them if the forest is really as dangerous as you say it is," said Julia.  
  
"Aren't out wands enough?" asked Ron.  
  
Emily burst out laughing, and everyone turned and stared, "Sorry Shakespeare memories. Weapons... Wands... All that's missing is a big hard ball that hurts Shelby," and with that she continued laughing.  
  
Julia gave a stifled a laugh, and Shelby turned and glared before Eve could just say, "No, Emily. Just, No." Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked at each other just to confirm that they were all equally confused  
  
"Well what are you supposed to do if it gets knocked out of your hand or you drop it? The only person who doesn't really have to worry about that is Shelby."  
  
"Why is that?" inquired Harry, looking at the girl lounging in a brown recliner.  
  
"I'm from the race that was the first to use magic, and it came from their spirits, so they didn't need wands. They weren't even invented, in fact. Anyway, they were the minyariel. Unfortunately, most of them were killed during the wars, and I am one of the few left. That probably sounded all high and mighty but trust me, I don't really care."  
  
"Why do you bother with a wand then?" asked Hermione.  
  
"So people don't ask questions," she said.  
  
"Do something," said Ron, getting a little over-zealous. "Prove that you don't need one."  
  
"What a dumb thing to ask," muttered Chris under his breath.  
  
Shelby lifted her hand in one swift motion and Ron went flying up toward the ceiling. He was stopped in the nick of time, then lowered slowly back down.  
  
"Awesome," he said when he landed.  
  
"Weapons!" said Brooke. "I want some stakes, just in case there are vampires." She transfigured three quills into three sharpened wooden stakes, and put them in her cloak. Julia rolled her eyes.  
  
"I want a tranquilizer gun," said Julia, transfiguring a pillow.  
  
Chris and Adam wanted brass knuckles, so they transfigured some tic- tacs. Eve wanted a saber, and Kara wanted a bow and arrows. Emily and Erika both got elven daggers.  
  
"What about you, Damien?" asked Hermione, who had a jar of acid.  
  
"Numb-chucks," he said simply, holding them up.  
  
"What should we get?" asked Harry and Ron. Kara thought for a minute, and then transfigured two hairbrushes into pikes.  
  
"Are we all set?" asked Julia. "OK. Let's go." They crept carefully through the halls, which was difficult, due to the clanking of their weapons. All of them were thinking of how much trouble they would be in if they got caught, especially because they were so heavily armed. Luckily, they managed to reach the grounds without being seen.  
  
"Alright," whispered Julia, who had unofficially taken the role of leader. "Let's stick together. Everyone keep a sharp eye out for anything threatening. The last thing we need is-"  
  
She cut off mid-sentence when she saw Brooke.  
  
Brooke was standing rigidly, not moving a muscle. Her face was void of any expression and her eyes had glazed over, turning almost completely white. Her long blonde hair was swirling about in the wind. Then she began to speak in a low-pitched, frightening voice.  
  
"A force from the Earth rises amongst the living. It contains the true power, and will be wielded by he who finds it first. In the hands of evil, it will release the forces of Hell and bring down all into oblivion. In the hands of good, it will destroy Evil forever. It has shown itself once in the form of the Light, never to be seen as such again. It will now reside in the pure, waiting for the day of conclusion. This has happened before."  
  
Everyone stood staring at her with looks of fear and confusion. Damien's numb-chucks fell to the ground. After a few seconds, Brooke came out of the trance, and looked around.  
  
"Dude, why are you all staring at me like that?" she asked.  
  
"Are you a seer?" asked Harry, dumbfounded.  
  
"Uhh.not that I know of." She replied slowly. "Perhaps madre forgot to tell me something." she added to herself.  
  
"Well, I think you just had a Vision," said Harry. "I've seen this kind of thing before with Professor Trelawny. It's really scary. Let's get back to the castle"  
  
"But what about the forest?" asked Eve.  
  
"We won't find what we're looking for here," said Hermione. "The thing we need to be worried about now if what this damn prophecy or whatever it is means."  
  
Author's note: I am so sorry that this took forever. I started this damn story without a plot thought up and I ran into serious issues. Sorry to those of you who actually care. I know this chapter was kinda stupid, but.at least I wrote something! Hahaha. Leave reviews so that I can improve!!!! 


	5. The Ball

Chapter 5...................................................................Ball  
  
"So that ruddy light we saw is some kind of supernatural force that is stuck in something that is supposedly 'pure' and it has the ability to take out the world?" said Ron, pacing back and forth in the American common room. Everyone had made it back safely, and was now spread out about the room, thinking hard.  
"Geeze, did I really say all of that stuff?" asked Brooke.  
"Yup," replied Chris. "The thing that has been bugging me is all this nonsense about a 'pure' whatsy. What in this world could be considered pure? Absolutely nothing comes to mind."  
"Maybe it's a person pure of spirit or soul," suggested Erika. She paused for a second. "Or maybe it could be some sort of creature. She said that the 'force' came from the earth, and animals seem to be more at one, so to speak, with the earth."  
"That's a good idea," said Hermione. She looked a bit miffed, almost as if she wished she had thought of the possibility.  
"Of course it is," said Erika, smirking and shaking a black eight ball in her hands. "I am the coolest. Even the eight ball would agree with that."  
  
Shelby sat up from a recliner with a frown on her face. "Excuse me, but the eight ball is always wrong. You just hexed it to give you whatever answer you wanted to hear." Erika just glared back.  
"Hey, why don't we put all this crap aside for a while and think about this Halloween ball coming up?" piped Kara.  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What the hell are you talking about?" asked an astonished Adam. Everyone looked up from their places with equally shocked faces.  
"Yeah...umm...Kara? Would you mind explaining yourself?" said Eve, raising an eyebrow.  
"What, were you all stoned on Monday in Potions? I know we all have it at different times that day, but Professor Snape told all of the classes."  
"Oh, Monday," said Harry, recalling previous events. "I fell asleep after the evil git decided to give us a lecture on the only magical property of rhino shit. I swear, I could kill him."  
"Yeah, I agree. Potions can be neat sometimes, but rhino shit? No thanks," said Hermione. Ron looked at her as if she had just shot someone. He never thought she would admit to falling asleep in a class.  
Emily started to get restless and finally said," So now it's clear that we all had issues on Monday and didn't hear about the ball. Could you please fill us in?"  
Kara just rolled her eyes. "Well, there's not much to explain. It's on Halloween...and it's a ball. Do you need for me to explain to you what is done at a ball?" she added sarcastically.  
"Is it a costume ball?" asked Julia.  
"Yup," replied Kara. "Halloween is 2 weeks away. We all need costumes and dates by then."  
"Dammit. I'm really not good at the whole getting a date thing," said Harry. He meant to speak quietly to himself, but his emotion got the better of him and he ended up speaking quite loudly.  
"Harry Potter, you are Harry Potter," said Emily as if she had a point.  
Harry just looked at her. "Yes...I am."  
"Which means," continued Emily, "that you shouldn't have any problem getting a date."  
"Ha, that's what you think," Harry said sadly. He stood there reminiscing about the time when he asked Cho to the Yule Ball and got turned down. He would never forget the embarrassment he felt, even though she turned out to be a whiny, clingy whore in fifth year.  
Julia, who had been playing tag with Jack, stopped running around and said, "Hey, Harry, do you want to go to the ball with me?" He just looked at her with a slightly stunned, but nonetheless grateful look on his face. "You do," she said simply with a confident look on her face.  
"See, I told you you were Harry Potter," said Emily self-importantly.  
  
"Thanks for the reminder," said Harry.  
They continued to talk about minor details of the ball until, one by one; they each fell asleep where they lay. The stars rolled over the sky, and the cool October dawn came with silently rolling mists.  
~*~ BEEEEEEEEEROOOOOOOOP.  
"Oh my God!"  
Everyone woke with a start and looked around frantically. Their eyes finally rested on Damien, who had fallen asleep on the carpet. He was rolling back and forth, waving his hands as though to clear the air.  
"Dude, what happened?" asked Adam, who was still curled up like a cat next to the fireplace.  
"That stupid monkey Jack fell asleep on my face, and let out the weirdest sounding, worst smelling fart I have ever witnessed in my entire life!" shrieked Damien. Everyone burst out laughing, and Erika looked very pleased with her pet. Kara rolled off her recliner and stood up.  
"Let's go get some breakfast," she suggested. "Professor Dumbledore is setting things up differently this morning so that the different houses can socialize a little more."  
"Is that because of the ball or the sorting hat?" asked Eve, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.  
"Hmm...I dunno. Probably both," shrugged Kara. They all magically freshened up and changed their clothes and proceeded to the Great Hall. Sure enough, there was a completely different set-up. There was one buffet table packed with food, and there were many large, circular tables placed all over the hall. Students were already flocking to the delicious looking food, and Crabbe and Goyle in particular, looked very pleased.  
"Bagels!" cried Shelby, running toward the table.  
"Lumpia!" said Erika in a similar manner.  
"Fruity Pebbles!"  
"Nachos!"  
"Tofu!"  
"How do they seem to have all of our favorite breakfast foods?" asked Chris, piling a load of tapioca pudding onto his pate. "It's just so cool. Nobody else has ever served delicious tapioca pudding for breakfast before. At least not for me. It makes me sad."  
"Maybe he's a seer too," suggested Brooke. "Dumbledore, I mean."  
"Does this mean that you are sure that you yourself are a seer?" asked Ron.  
"Sure, I guess so," she replied.  
They finished loading their plates and spread out over the Great Hall. The noise level rose as everyone was speaking animatedly ad laughing. Many seemed to begetting dates to the upcoming ball too. Eve as sitting with a tall, skinny Gryffindor with hair that was partially dyed red. Brooke was laughing at a blonde Hufflepuff's joke while Adam was busy chatting up Ginny Weasly. Shelby was completely enamored with a boy from Ravenclaw who had longish, dark curly hair. Something that came as quite a shock was that Erika was sitting with none other than Draco Malfoy.  
Ron leaned over to Harry, and pointed across the hall. "What is Erika doing sitting with that ruddy ferret? She knows how evil he is! Crikey, she even helped in hexing his ass while we were on the train!"  
Harry just shrugged. "These Americans are so bloody loony that I wouldn't put anything past them. Plus, they do all these weird things, but there seems to be some indistinguishable logic behind all of it. Except for that one time when..." Julia looked up from her cereal, her orange eyes staring back and forth between the two. "Well, no offense or anything," he added. An uncomfortable silence followed, and then Julia suddenly burst out laughing. She quickly contained herself and went back to her cereal. "Just like I said," muttered Harry. Then, turning his attention toward Hermione, he said, "So, anyone special you're going to the ball with?"  
Hermione blushed. "Well...yes, actually, but it's kind of complicated..." Harry just stared blankly. Clearly he had no idea what she was talking about.  
"Ron cleared his throat. "Actually, Hermione and I are going together." He cast a nervous glance over at Harry to see his reaction. "I just asked her lat night after Kara told us about it," he added as an afterthought. Harry sat there shocked for a few moments, and then came to his senses. 'It's about time!' he thought to himself. 'These two have liked each other ever since fourth year, even though they will never admit it.'  
"That's fantastic, you two," he said aloud, smiling. "You'll have a blast." Ron and Hermione seemed to relax a great deal after he said that.  
"So, Harry, what do you think we should go as?" asked Julia.  
"Uhh...I was kind of hoping that you would think of something because I'm not very useful in that department," said Harry slowly.  
"Awesome," she replied. "I've already thought of something. You'll just need to buy a tux during the next Hogsmead trip."  
"Easy enough," said Harry.  
Dean, who was sitting next to the group said, "Julia, I was curious- how come your school has two names. You told us when you first got here that it was Spuzz Squishford, and some other time you said it was called Aglar or something like that. What gives?"  
"Aglar is the official name of the school, and Spuzz is just our pet name for it," she replied.  
"Thanks for clearing that up."  
~*~  
The next two weeks could not have passed by any slower. Everybody was so excited about the ball, their costumes, and their dates that classes felt like they would never end. But they did eventually, and the event finally came. Everybody spent the latter part of Saturday afternoon getting ready, and by the evening, everyone was completely transformed and ready to party hard.  
As usual, most people congregated in the entrance hall to meet their dates from other houses. There was more confusion due to the costumes, but it also made things more fun. The Great Hall was decorated to perfection as always. There were cobwebs hanging everywhere, pumpkins floating about and every ghost in the castle was hanging around, trying to look scary.  
Slowly but surely, the students made it into the hall. Ron and Hermione entered in their renaissance attire as Lancelot and Guinevere. Harry had gotten his tux and Julia had turned her hair to bright red with long waves, and was wearing a red long-flowing, corseted dress.  
"Who are you two supposed to be?" asked Hermione.  
"We are Satine and Christian from Moulin Rouge," replied Julia.  
"Never heard of it," said Ron. "Where's everyone else?"  
"They should be coming soon."  
The first to come in were Emily and Chris. Both had their hair slicked back, wore black sunglasses, and sported long black trench coats.  
"Why, hello Trinity and Neo," said Julia with a curtsy. They just nodded in response. Eve came in next with the Gryffindor who she announced as Sean. He was dressed as Jack Skellington while she was dressed in a patched dress and had pretend stitch markings painted on her skin as Sally. After them came four very pale people who were none other than Erika, Draco Malfoy, Shelby, and the Ravenclaw boy she had been sitting with. Erika was wearing a long silver and red dress with an eighteenth century flair. Draco wore a long leather trench coat over black pants and a shirt.  
Ron gave a look of curios untrusting to Draco and asked, "Who are you two?"  
"We are the vampires Drusilla and Spike," said Erika. "I hardly feel like I'm in costume though," she added, sighing.  
"Why's that?"  
"Nevermind."  
The attention now turned to Shelby and her dark-haired date. She wore a gothic-style black dress with a long flowing train and dramatically drooping sleeves, a corseted bodice, and a high, roll-neck collar. She was wearing blue contacts which made it very frightening to look her directly in the eye. She motioned toward her date and said, "This is Ike. He's a Ravenclaw." He was wearing a classic Count Dracula costume, but with a slightly more rock star flair. His curly hair was loose and partially in his eyes instead of severely slicked back; bits of his clothing were artificially ripped and torn; and to top it all off, he wore rugged combat boots with spikes on the ankles. He too wore bright contacts.  
"Nice to meet you," said Hermione.  
"Nice to meet you too," he replied, smiling. A glistening set of fangs was present.  
Brooke came in, holding the arm of a blonde Hufflepuff named Andrew, who the Gryffindor trio had met in their sixth year during an interesting potions class, in which someone's cauldron turned into an ox with a badger's head. Unfortunately, the creature carried an extremely rare disease called bageritis, and many students were infected. Anyway, Brooke was wearing a long pale blue dress and a silver tiara atop her mane of long blonde hair. Andrew wore a black shirt with billowing sleeves, black pants, and pirate boots, and even had a slim, silver rapier on his belt. In case you didn't know, they were Buttercup and Wesley from The Princess Bride.  
"Does anybody know if that wanker Adam is coming with Ginny?" asked Ron with a scowl. Everybody nodded as the aforementioned entered the hall. Ginny was dressed in the exact golden dress that Belle wore in Beauty and the Beast. Adam wore a decadent suit complete with a large mask of the beast. Ron just shook his head.  
Shelby smiled a fanged smile and said, "And now for the grand finale..." The group's attention turned to the couple that had just entered. It was probably the most ridiculous sight that any of them had seen (besides Kara's lovely table dance, that is). Kara stood there in her Spiderman pj's, which were not quite long enough. She also added a spandex mask with facial cutouts. Her wavy brown hair was sticking out of the back. Damien, who was a bit shorter than her, stood next to her, dressed as Wonderwoman. He wore the whole skimpy outfit with handkerchiefs to fill the chest area, a flipped-out black wig, arm cuffs, and held a golden lasso in his right hand. Everyone was shocked, but they clapped and cheered once they had taken it all in. The two took a humble bow.  
By that time, the hall was full, the music had started, and couples had begun to dance, talk, and eat. They spread out and began to enjoy themselves After about an hour of crazy dancing, Julia rounded up the Americans and muttered something in secret. They all became very excited, except for the boys, who looked very irritated. Julia ran off and asked Dumbledore something. When she finished, he smiled and stood up in front of the crowd. After getting everyone's attention he said, "Alright everyone, we have a special treat for you. We are going to have a live performance from our foreign exchange students. They will now play a song entitled "Hey Ya" by an American group called Outkast."  
Everyone clapped. Ron, Hermione, and Harry just looked at each other, not knowing what to expect. Julia was singing lead vocals while Adam, Chris, and Damien were on backup. Kara was on drums, Shelby on bass, Eve on guitar, Brooke on keyboard, Emily on kazoo, and Erika on maracas. The lights dimmed, and the appropriate spotlights were shined on the performers. Julia stepped up to the mike and began with, "One, two, three, UH!" The band was cued and started to jam.  
"My baby don't mess around  
  
Because she loves me so  
  
And this I know fo shooo...  
  
Uh, but does she really wanna  
  
But can't stand to see me  
  
Walk out the doo...  
  
Don't try to fight the feelin'  
  
Because the thought alone is killing me right nooww...  
  
Uh, thank god for mom and dad  
  
For sticking through together  
  
'Cause we don't know hooowww...  
  
UH!"  
[Backup] "Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa...  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa..."  
[Julia] "You think you've got it  
  
Ohh, you think you've go it  
  
But got it just don't get it  
  
Till' there's nothing at  
  
AaaaaaaaAAAAAAAaaaaaaAAAAAAaaaaaallllll...  
  
We've been together  
  
Ohh, we've been together  
  
Ohh, we've been together  
  
But seperate's always better when there's feelings  
  
InvooooooOOOOOOOoooooooOOOOOOooooooOOOOOlved  
  
If what they say is "Nothing is forever"  
  
Then what makes, Then what makes LOOVVEEE?  
  
(Love exception) So why you, why you  
  
Why you, why you, why you are we so in denial  
  
When we are not happy heeeerrreeee...  
  
Y'all don't want me here you just wanna dance."  
[Backup] "Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa...[Julia] (OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa.. (OHH OH)  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaaa...(Don't want to meet your daddy, OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaa...(Just want you in my Caddy OHH OH)  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa... (OHH OH, don't want to meet yo' mamma OHH OH)  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaa...(I'm, OHH OH I'm, OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa... (I'm just being honest OHH OH, I'm just being  
honest)"  
[Julia, speaking] "Hey, alright now  
  
Alright now fellas, [the male audience answered] "YEAH"  
  
Now what's cooler than bein' cool?  
  
(ICE COLD!) I can't hear ya'  
  
I say what's cooler than bein' cool?  
  
(ICE COLD!) whooo...  
  
Alright, alright, alright, alright  
  
Alright, alright, alright, alright  
  
Alright, alright, alright, alright  
  
Alright, alright, alright, OK now ladies, [the female audience  
answered] "YEAH"  
  
And we gon' break this back down in just a few seconds  
  
Now don't have me break this thang down for nothin'  
  
Now I wanna see y'all on y'all baddest behavior  
  
Gimme some suga', I am your neighber ahh here we go!  
  
Shake it, shake it, shake it, shake it (OHH OH)  
  
Shake it, shake it, shake it, shake it, shake it, shake it (OHH OH)  
  
Shake, shake it like a Poloroid Picture, shake it, shake it  
  
Shh you got to, shake it, shh, shake it, shake it, got yo shake it  
  
(Shake it Suga') shake it like Poloroid Picture"  
[Brooke, speaking] "Now all Beyonces and Lucy Lius  
  
And baby dogs, get on the floor  
  
(Get on the floor)  
  
You know what to dooo...  
  
Yoooooouuu... Know I do"  
[Backup] "Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa... (OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa... (OHH OH)  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa... (OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa... (Uh oh, Hey ya)  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa... (OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa... (Uh, uh, OHH OH)  
  
Heeeyyy... Yaaaaaaa... (OHH OH)  
  
Heeyy Yaaaaaaaa... (OHH OH)" When they finished, the crowd went nuts with applause. Everyone bowed and left the stage. They went to sit down with their friends and dates. "You guys are amazing!" said Ike. "We know," said Shelby with a cheeky smile. "You should play an encore," said Hermione. "We just might," said Erika, sitting down next to Draco. "What did you think of it, pet?" Her voice had gone softer and bit more insane. She was, in fact, speaking just like Drusilla would. Ron just stared blankly, clearly still amazed that she was going with Draco. "It was wonderful, luv," he replied smiling fangedly. (A/N: yes, I made that word up.) "So I see the vampire thing is very popular this year, said Harry, after seeing four pairs of fangs. "Ike and I are a lot cooler though," said Shelby. "Dru and Spike just exercise all the time...stupid whores..." Erika shifted in her seat. "Funny you should say that, because I kind of...am." "Yes, I can see that. The fangs are all I need for proof," said Ron. "No, I mean I AM." "What, you are actually a vampire?" asked Harry in shock. "Yes, I am," said Erika. "Everybody seems to be coming out with what they are, and I figured it might as well be my time." "But there are so many people here!" said Hermione, looking around. "Vampires aren't looked on very highly around here. It's the same with werewolves." "Eh, no one is listening. People are too hyper and the music is too loud." "Ok, so now we know that amongst you so far are a metamorphmagous, a minyariel, a seer, and a vampire," calculated Harry. "I have never met a weirder group." "Oh, this is just the beginning," said Damien, with a smirk, twirling his lasso. "Well, I think we can save some more for later," said Hermione quickly, not liking the look of Damien's lasso and his lack of coordination. "Let's go dance." "That's an excellent idea," said Draco. Hermione, Ron, and Harry just looked at him, dumbfounded. Why was their worst enemy hanging out with them, and worst of all- being polite? They looked toward Erika with questioning looks on their faces. She could clearly read what they were thinking, and simply flashed a [genuine] fanged mischievous smile, and went with Draco to the dance floor. Everyone, with the exception of Kara and Damien, who were doing an odd hopping dance, was soon slow-dancing to Aerosmith's "Don't Wanna Miss a Thing." When the song ended, Professor Smith, who was dressed as a purple troll, got up and said, "The staff was wondering if we could have an encore performance from our exchange students." Naturally, they agreed, and went back up on stage. The spotlight focused on Julia, who took the mike from the stand, and began to speak, "I put a spell on you, ...and now...you're mine. You can't stop the things I do. I ain't lyin'. It's been 300 years, right down to the day! Now the witch is back! And there's hell to pay. I put a spell on you." [The band started to kick in.] "And now...you're...miiiiiiiiiiiine!" "I put a spell on you, And now you're gone." [Backup] "Gone, gone, gone. So long!" [Julia] "I put a spell on you. And it was strong." [Backup] "So strong, so strong, so strong!" [Julia] "Your wretched little lives Have all been cursed because of all the witches working! I'm the worst! I put a spell on you, And now you're mine." [Backup] "Watch out, watch out, watch out, watch out." [Julia] "If you don't believe, You'd better get superstitious. Ask my sisters!" [Backup] "Ooh, she's vicious." [Julia] "I put a spell on you. I put a spell on you." [Chanting] "Ah se ento pi alpha mabi upendi." [Audience repeated] [Julia] "En comma quoriamma." [Audience repeated.] [Julia] "Eh." [Repeat] "Ah" [Repeat] "Ce" [Repeat] "Bye, byyyyeeeeeeeeeeeeee. Bye BYE!" The drums and bass finished out and crowd went nuts yet again."  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ I know I take freakin forever on these things, but it's worth it, right?! *ducks flying tomatoes* Ok, fine. F.Y.I.- I write all of this stuff down on paper, and then it goes through constant revision while being typed up...you know. That whole bit. So now you have it. All eight bloody pages of it. I know theres no cliff hanger to keep you all coming back (Ha, like you would anyway), but whatever. This story is for my wacked out homies and they seem to love me no matter how long it takes to write. Plus, my muse goes on hiatus a lot, so...yeah...I usually get inspired after seeing a really awesome movie. Damn, gotta cut this short, but.....REVIEW!!!!! 


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